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How Emerging Technologies are Changing the Retail Landscape

E-commerce capitalized on consumer's desire for convenience, but the rise of it has induced a plague on brick and mortar stores. For them to stay open and stay competitive, they must revolutionize the way they operate. Some of the potential technologies that can influence the retail business are as follows:

Augmented Reality (AR) changes the browsing experience of a customer at a retail unit, allowing the customer to catalog and compare several products or even see products in action where previously implausible. The most significant effect would be in the clothing sector, where mirrors, headsets and other AR technologies smart could transform the way shoppers consider their choices. AR videos could, for instance, demonstrate how a product unit on display could work in real life.

Already being implemented by retail giants, the scan-and-go cashless check-out model could quickly catch on to speed up and streamline the retail experience. Combined with technologies like chatbots and remote voice operation, it could not only make store clerks obsolete but also integrate customer support into the customer experience.

Retailers can monitor customer needs and preferences more efficiently using analytics and environmental monitoring. The time spent in different sections in a store for instance, or customer preferences and developing trends can be tracked using AI and deep learning.

Efficient delivery systems are compensating for the drop with a significant reduction in footfall in retail stores. While still in the infant stage of development, drones could soon find mainstream acceptance.

Inventory tracking, stock availability, shipping details, and orders are all moving to the cloud. With cloud computing, retailers can cut the cost of software development and process data at a much faster rate.

Facial recognition technology can also help retailers better identify customer preferences. It can track where customers gravitate within stores, determine customer demographics, and prevent theft. By monitoring where most customers first go to shops, business leaders can design a store layout for its clientele.